i am a third-generation fruit farmer with operations in virginia. we employ from 30 to 155 workers, depending on the time of year. the fact that i appear before you today as a farmer with the president of u f w should send a very powerful message. we have a common problem. despite continued attempts at automation, apple's still need to be manually pruned and hand- picked. the work as physically demanding and a certain amount of skill is necessary. apple's bruce greatly -- apples bruise easily, and improper picking will greatly reduce the value of our crop. today, farmers rely on legal and illegal workers. without a solution, farms will fail. we will export jobs and lose our food. government statistics tell us that 80% of farm workers are foreign-born, and half of those are unauthorized. only 2%, are coming in through the existing program. many believe that native-born workers will harvest american specialty crops, however, the take our jobs campaign is just the latest in a series of unsuccessful efforts in good and bad times, in michigan, washington